Washingtonville's spellbinding 'D' claims another victim

Friday

WASHINGTONVILLE — The Washingtonvlle Wizards' defense cast its spell on yet another offense.

Washingtonville caused three turnovers and held Minisink Valley to 7 yards of total offense en route to a 14-0 Class AA Division II victory on Friday night.

Senior running back and linebacker Erich Keutmann scored on a 2-yard run with 3:46 remaining in the first quarter. He added a 69-yard touchdown reception with 1:05 left in the third quarter.

"We knew it was going to be a dogfight against Minisink no matter what," Washingtonville senior safety and tight end Jack Zimmer said. "They were 4-0 and we were 4-0 and we've played the same teams. We just knew we had to be the better team on the field, and we showed up."

Zimmer recovered a fumble with 7:25 remaining in the first quarter to set up Washingtonville's first touchdown. He added an interception.

Senior defensive end Alex Leonty and senior defensive lineman John Tecklenburg had two sacks apiece. Keutmann had 1 1/2 sacks and made nine tackles.

"Our coaches scouted Minisink, so we knew what they were going to do on offense and defense and we were prepared for it," Keutmann said.

Keutmann finished with four receptions for 106 yards. Senior quarterback Sean Dunnigan complete 7-of-11 passes for 111 yards. Keutmann threw a 23-yard pass to Dunnigan on a toss-pass play to give Washingtonville a first down late in the fourth quarter.

Washingtonville amassed just 52 yards rushing, but the Wizards had no turnovers on a rainy night at home.

Of course, the Wizards' defense did plenty to keep the ball out of the end zone and put the Washingtonville offense in good field position.

"I didn't think it was going to be a very high-scoring game, and I really felt like our defense was going to play well," Washingtonville head coach Don Clark said. "They had been playing well."

Washingtonville (5-0, 3-0 Division II) has allowed just 28 points through five games with two shutouts. The Wizards can clinch the Division II title with a win at Valley Central on Friday.

"We have stuff to fix on Monday when it comes, but for right now, it was a good win," Zimmer said.

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